Selvaged unwoven zigzag fabric



June 25, 1935. R. J. soUTHwELL Er AL 2,005,760

SELVAGED UNWOVEN ZIGZAG FABRIC Filed Aug. l2, 1933 QQQQQQ ww Q S S S S S S @Ob mi Patented June 25, 1935 PATENTA OFFICE d 2,005,700 -sELvAGED UNwovEN zIGzAG' FABRIC Raymond J. Southwell and Theodore H. Wickl wire, Jr., New York, N. Y.

Application August 12,

12 Claims.

by the'strands being secured together at their meeting surfaces, as by electric welding.

The main object of the present invention is the provision of unwoven, zig-Zag, sheet fabric having a substantially continuous selvage along theA edge or edges thereof.

, Figure 1 of the accompanying drawing shows a ,fabric sheet having a substantially continuous selvage in accordance with our invention, the particulary fabric shown for illustration having a square diamond mesh, except; at the selvage l edges, wherethe mesh formation is substantially triangular, and inv which the selvage is a single selvage, that is, made up of single portions of wire.

Figure 2 is a similar, but fragmentary and dia- ,grammaticaL view on an enlarged scale showing ,'a modified form'with double selvage. f In making square diamond mesh fabric with single selvage, as illustrated in Fig. 1, af'set of laterally spaced continuous strands, a, b, c, d, e, vr121g, h., i, and 1' (wire a-though ordinarily no different from the others-being vshaded in the drawing for ready identification; and ten wires being shown for simplicity of illustration, though, ordinarily, the number is much greater), have parallel portions al, bI, cI, il, disposed at an angle of 45 to the lengthwise direction of the desired sheet to be formed,jand laid vto an edge I0 of4 such sheet I2. There, short portions a2, b2, c2, i2, are disposed lengthwise of the sheet along the edge thereof to constitute or form, when secured together, a continuous, preferably straight or substantiallyvstraight, selvage, indicated generally *byV referencescharacter I 4. The length 'of each of such portions a2 i2, as shown, is equal to the pitch ofthe fabric mesh, the term pitch being used to vdesignate the distance p between successive strands, as a, b, c, etc., measured in the lengthwise direction of the sheet. Thus, when the dispositions or lays al gil, and the dispositions or lays a2 7'2 have been made, wire ahas caught up to or overtaken wire b at I5, wire b has similarly overtaken wire c at I5', and so on successively, and the portions a2, b2, c2 :i2 overlap at I5, I 5 etc., and are adapted upon such overlaps being welded together, to form a selvage that is substantially straight, but still has enough kink effect in it to allow for expansion and contraction due to heat and cold in outdor uses,

issaserial No. 684,800

(Cl. 18s- 82) as, for fencing, and which heretofore have had to be taken care of ordinarilyby the crimping of selvage wires.

Thence, portions a3, b3, c3 i3 are laid or folded inwardly upon the lay or fold aI, bl cI y'I at right angles to said portions al, bI, Yc! fil, (angle of 45 to longitudinal sheet direction) to the opposite edge I8 of the sheetfIZ. Here, again, pitch-length portions a4, b4, c4 i4 are disposed longitudinally of the sheet along the edge to form a selvage 20, similarly to formation of selvagev I4. Thence, strandf portions a5, b5, c5 i5 are laid or folded inwardly upon the lay or fold portions a3 A. 7'3v as before,

overlapping substantiallyv half of such lay or l" Ifold a3-.. i3, and this formation is recurrent being repeated to and at the respective edges indefinitely. It will be seen that 4in this waythe portion f1.5` of wire a (at one edgeof the set of wires) comes out to the edgev at 22, one pitchklength p ahead of point 24 where portion jl of wire 7' (at the other edge of theset of wires) comes out to the edge,` andthus in correct position to make the spacing uniform throughout the sheet and to form an overlap `with selvage n portion 7'2 of `such wire 1'.

The width -of square mesh selvaged -fabric made in the manner described from the set of ten continuous wires a :i is four .times the pitch length p, as shown, the transverse and longitudinal pitch distances pl, p being'equal with square mesh fabric, each being a diagonal of the samesquare; and, generally, the number of wires required for making. such a square mesh selvaged` fabric is 2 plus twice the quotient obtained when the sheet width` is divided bythe pitch. y .7

While an exact squaremesh fabrichas beendej scribed inV detail in order tosgive a full'disclosure of a preferred embodiment of the invention, and is preferred, it will be understood that by choosing the transverse and longitudinal pitches of unequal length, the diamonds ofthe mesh rmay be correspondingly elongated or shortened to forming portions A2, B2, C2, etc. being of double length P or twice the pitch length p, as indicated specically in the drawing at B2.

In making fabric of wire, the wire crossings 26 making up the interior or diamond shaped meshes 28 are preferably welded while the fabric is held by the edges by means of fingers or hooks (not shown), and after these crossings 26 have been welded with the fabric so supported, the edges of the welded-together fabric are released from such hooks or fingers, and then the selvage and the substantially triangular edge meshes 30 arer completed by` Welding the selvage overlaps to-v gether.

It will be seen that, by `the lpresent invention, the fabric is provided wtih a substantial selvage in a very simple and inexpensive manner, and

without need for welding on separate wires or resorting to like expedients.

Having thus described our invention, what W .claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: `1. As a new article of manufacture, zig-zag, unwoven sheet fabric which is of diamond mesh formation, except at the edges where the kmesh formation is substantially triangular, andhaving lsubstantially continuous straight selvage edges, saidfabric consisting of a single set of continuous Y fold, Vand said fabric and selvage being Amade self-sustaining and strong by the strands having the meeting surfaces thereof vdirectly Vsecured together at points of crossing and of selvage portion overlaps.

2. Fabric in accordance with claim 1, and in which the longitudinal -pltch is at least equal to the transverse pitch. 3. Fabric in accordance with claim 1, and in which the diamond mesh is substantially square, and the number of strands in the set is 2 plus twice the quotient obtained when the sheet Width is divided by the pitch (diagonal of the mesh square).

4. Fabric in accordance with claim 1, and in which the longitudinally disposed selvage-forming portions overlap only the vnext adjacent strand of the set and form principally single thickness selvage.`

5. Fabric in accordance with claim 1, and in which the longitudinally disposed selvage-forming portions overlap thenext adjacent Astrand of the set and also one additional strand and form substantially double thickness selvage.

6. Fabric in accordance with claim 1, and in which the diamond mesh is substantially square, and the number of strands in the set is 2 plus twice the product obtained when the sheet width is divided by the pitch, and the longitudinally disposed selvage portions overlap only the next adjacent strand of the set andv form principally single-thickness selvage. Y

'7. As a new article of manufacture, zig-zag, unwoven sheet fabric, which is of diamond mesh formation, except at the edges, where the mesh formation is substantially triangular, and having substantially continuous straight selvage edges, said fabric consisting of a single set of continuous laterally spaced metallic strands laid to an edge of ther sheet and having selvage forming portions thereof disposed for a distance longitudinally along such edge, thence laid or folded inwardly to the opposite edge, and theredisposed along the edge of the sheet and thence laidor folded back in the same way as disposedand laid or folded at and from the first edge, with each successive lay or fold at the `same face of and` vwhich the longitudinal pitch'is at least equa'lto the transverse pitch.

9. Fabric 1n accordance with daim v'1, and in which the diamond mesh is substantially square. and the number of strands inthe set is 2 plus twice the quotient obtained whenthe sheet width is divided by the pitch (diagonal ofthe in esh square). l g

10. Fabric in accordance with claim 7',V and in Vwhich the longitudinally disposed selvage-forming portions overlap only the next adjacent strand of the'set `and form principally single thickness selvage. A l 11. Fabric in accordance with claim '7, and in which the longitudinallyfdisposed selvage-forming portions overlap the next adjacent strand of the set` and also one additional strand and form substantially double thickness selvage. i

12. Fabric in accordance with claim "7, landi!! which the diamond mesh is substantially square, and the number of strands in the set is 2` plus twice the product 'obtained when the sheet width is divided by the pitch, and the longitudinally disposed selvage portions overlap only Athe next ad- 

